8 replies to this topic

[CarlosM]

Today an uncle of mine comes knocking on my door and says he has 25 lbs of grapes he wants to turn to wine. So Im like what ever and follow him to where they are. Apparently it was 35 gallons worth not 25lbs like he said.the guys who crushed it from him put it in a brute garbage bucket. They have been making wine for some time and well I dont know if they sanitized it or anything else so thats problem number 1.I told him we need to hurry because who knows if any bad bugs got in so we bought some cuvee yeast and I measured the OG at 1060, the grapes are an unknown variety to me but taste alot like concord.so I sanitized a demijohn and 4 carboys and pitched the cuvee yeast from Fermentis.What can I expect from this random endeavor? SIDENOTE: he gave me 10 gallons to take home haha.

[strangebrewer]

What can I expect from this random endeavor?

Equally as random results.First off I wouldn't worry too too much about the sanitation of the Brute can. The initial steps in wine making are anything but sanitary so threat of contamination is pretty low. If you got an SG around 1.06 and they smell like concords well you probably have concords. Though in your area you could have Niagra's just as likely. How did they taste? Tart? Sweet? The thing that would be REALLY good to know is what your acid levels are. I don't have a ton of time this morning to go into gorey detail but you can read through the wine making FAQ and that will get you going in the right direction. It's a lot to digest but wine making can be very detailed if you want it to be. For now I'd say make sure you are giving the yeast enough nutrient Fermaid K and DAP as wine must can be a pretty hostile place. If you start getting off smells from the fermentation chances are it's a nutrient deficiency. I'd consider bumping your gravity up to the 1.080+ range using good ol table sugar. At 1.060 you'll probably ferment out to 1.000 so 8% ABV. That's low for wine. 1.080 will get you to just shy of 11% ABV and you're starting to get into the safer range as far as preventing other little fermenting friends. It's a fine balance though as if your grapes don't have a ton of flavor then you risk making grape flavored jet fuel. You know what wine is supposed to taste like so trust your instincts. Good luck

[CarlosM]

Equally as random results.First off I wouldn't worry too too much about the sanitation of the Brute can. The initial steps in wine making are anything but sanitary so threat of contamination is pretty low. If you got an SG around 1.06 and they smell like concords well you probably have concords. Though in your area you could have Niagra's just as likely. How did they taste? Tart? Sweet? The thing that would be REALLY good to know is what your acid levels are. I don't have a ton of time this morning to go into gorey detail but you can read through the wine making FAQ and that will get you going in the right direction. It's a lot to digest but wine making can be very detailed if you want it to be. For now I'd say make sure you are giving the yeast enough nutrient Fermaid K and DAP as wine must can be a pretty hostile place. If you start getting off smells from the fermentation chances are it's a nutrient deficiency. I'd consider bumping your gravity up to the 1.080+ range using good ol table sugar. At 1.060 you'll probably ferment out to 1.000 so 8% ABV. That's low for wine. 1.080 will get you to just shy of 11% ABV and you're starting to get into the safer range as far as preventing other little fermenting friends. It's a fine balance though as if your grapes don't have a ton of flavor then you risk making grape flavored jet fuel. You know what wine is supposed to taste like so trust your instincts. Good luck

could I just add wyeast nutrient? its only thing I have on hand and yeast has been pitched? Can I still add it?

[strangebrewer]

could I just add wyeast nutrient? its only thing I have on hand and yeast has been pitched? Can I still add it?

Wyeast nutrient would work. Yes you can add it mid-ferment no problem. Just dissolve it in some water first, add it in and mix it all up. Depending on the yeast you used some have higher nitrogen demands than others. Hence the need for adding DAP. Smell the active airlocks from time to time and if you start to get a sulfur/rotten egg smell then that's a hint of a yeast stressed for nutrients. If that happens you want to head it off ASAP or that smell will linger in the finished wine.

[CarlosM]

Wyeast nutrient would work. Yes you can add it mid-ferment no problem. Just dissolve it in some water first, add it in and mix it all up. Depending on the yeast you used some have higher nitrogen demands than others. Hence the need for adding DAP. Smell the active airlocks from time to time and if you start to get a sulfur/rotten egg smell then that's a hint of a yeast stressed for nutrients. If that happens you want to head it off ASAP or that smell will linger in the finished wine.

Im assuming the name is Red Star, its the Premier Cuvee yeast. Right now it monstrously smells like concord grapes being fermented and there is no sulfury smells at all present. Hopefully the wyeast nutrient will do well.

[CarlosM]

so it finished at 1.000 very dry still a bit fruity.it went from 1060-1000 so roughly would put it around 7.8% right?the sulfur smells were warded off and just needs to age I suppose. Even for being so young i shall be quite drinkable.so question guys since Im assuming primary fermentation is done should I rack it to a secondary and let it clear up in there and age as well?

[Wayne B]

so question guys since Im assuming primary fermentation is done should I rack it to a secondary and let it clear up in there and age as well?

Yes. However this is a low alcohol wine, so it can be susceptible to spoilage more easily than one of higher proof. So take extra care when you rack, that all your equipment is sanitized.

[CarlosM]

how do I go about dgeassing it at this stage?

[Wayne B]

Degassing will occur naturally when you rack, and will continue with aging if you keep it under an airlock, so I wouldn't worry about it unless you are specifically trying to hurry the process (or you have noticeable amounts of hydrogen sulfide that you are trying to remove).